LAS VEGAS — In an animated closing argument that lasted almost three hours, Rick Tabish's defense attorney compared alleged murder victim Ted Binion to Caesar, called the state's case "pure speculation" and claimed that a renowned forensic pathologist was a "maverick" who betrayed his profession for money and publicity.

"Why are we here? Holy cow, why are we here?" defense attorney Tony Serra asked jurors. "We're here because of one witness: Baden. [Dr. Michael] Baden stands alone, he stands isolated, he stands rejected by his peers."

The white-haired, ponytailed attorney, known for his dramatic oratory style, recounted the numerous defense experts who took issue with Baden's theory that Rick Tabish and Sandra Murphy suffocated Binion to death using a cruel method called "burking" in which one blocked his airway while the other sat on his chest.

Casino heir Ted Binion, a longtime heroin addict, was allegedly murdered by his live-in girlfriend and her secret lover on the morning of Sept. 17, 1998. Before they pillaged his home of cash and valuables, prosecutors say, the pair laid his body on a mat in the den, placing an empty Xanax bottle at his side and heroin paraphernalia nearby in an attempt to make his death look like an overdose.

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"My client wasn't there. Dear God, do you understand that?" Serra shouted.

Binion's death was initially ruled an overdose, but nine months later, after an intense investigation by the Binion family, Murphy and Tabish were arrested and charged with his murder.

Serra, the inspiration for James Woods' eccentric attorney in the film "True Believers," often punctuated his points with flourishes of drama, roleplaying and even a lullaby-like song about addiction.

"It's easy to convict the guilty," he said, pretending to be a nefarious prosecutor and rubbing his hands together as he spoke. "The real challenge is to convict the innocent," he hissed.

At one point, Serra compared the casinos of Vegas to palaces.

"Mr. Ted Binion was a demigod: 'Hail Caesar! We will find an assailant. The head must be brought forth and placed on a stick by dusk! We will not allow a mistress to live in the hallowed ground of our royalty!'"

Murphy looked down and appeared to be crying into a tissue.

"The offense is that royalty has been insulted," Serra said.

Serra described Tabish as a "workaholic" from a good Montana family, who built his trucking business from the ground up. He said that Tabish enjoyed a close camaraderie with Binion, and that the two liked to talk about horses, fishing and hunting.

He argued that, while Tabish had a $1.2 million tax lien and more than $500,000 in business loans due, he had millions of dollars worth of assets and deals in place at the time of Binion's death that would have put his personal financial matters back in order.

"He wasn't in a state of desperation, he was in a state of great expectations," Serra said. "There was utterly no motive to steal, no motive to rob, there was no motive to take the silver. No, no, no. Just the opposite."

Some jurors slumped into their chairs and appeared tired, but at least three took copious notes. One male juror glared at Serra, then dropped his head for several minutes and picked away at something on his hand, occasionally peering up with a furrowed brow.

Prosecutor Christopher Lalli stated during his closing argument earlier Thursday that Binion was worth more dead than alive to Murphy, because on July 9, the casino heir put Murphy in his will, providing her with $300,000 in cash, his home and all its contents in the event of his death. Witnesses testified that the secret couple then began openly discussing Binion's pending demise.

But Serra recounted a jury instruction about paid witnesses, telling jurors to consider that some of the witnesses received reward money — ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 — from the Binion family at the end of the first trial.

"The law speaks through euphemism and, on occasion, metaphor. So it don't say, 'Hey, when these guys get $20,000 for their testimony, they might be lyin', they might be deceivin', they might be fabricatin' in order to get the money.' The law don't say that."

Tabish was arrested the night after Binion's death when he and two assistants were caught at 2 a.m. unloading the last of Binion's $8 million worth of silver coins and bars from an underground vault into a waiting hauler.

He maintains that he was procuring the treasure for Binion's daughter Bonnie, and Serra characterized his client's actions as so "open and notorious" as to be innocent.

"Is that the way you steal silver? They were excavating the whole thing. This is not the earmark of thievery," Serra said. "Either you gotta say, 'You are the craziest stupidest thief in the history of the world,' or there's reasonable doubt."

Murphy's defense attorney will give his closing arguments on Friday morning followed by a prosecution rebuttal.

They are charged with six counts, including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit burglary and grand larceny. They both face 20 years to life in prison if convicted.

Court TV Extra is streaming the trial live on the Web.